wideford
Structure 8
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Structure 8 diagonal view
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Structure 8 grand ‘hearth’ entrance
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Structure 8 hearth ‘entrance‘
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Structure 8 hearth ‘entrance’ looking out
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Structure 8 entrance and intermediary space
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House 2 with exterior walls
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House 2 with Structure 8 behind
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House 2 diagonal view
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House 2 view along entrance to back
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looking into House 3
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House 3 looking front to back
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House 3 entrance at left. Watchstone by red roofed house in background and Brodgar Standing Stone Pair at far right behind marking Lesser Wall of Brodgar
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House 3 looking over to Firth, House 6 upper right
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Barnhouse Neolithic Settlement looking southwards
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Houses 2 and 3
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House 2 and Structure 8
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House 3 with House 6 behind
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House 6 with houses 2 & 3 behind, in the background Stones of Stenness at left and Watch Stone to left of Odin Cottage
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Twi Ness rather than meaning twin-ness is said to be tongue-ness as there is no double headland, but the name Point of Dishan can only go as far back as The Douche so could well have been the other half of a Twi Ness (Doocot Point is shown seperately). The mound sits above the rocky headland. I wonder if the large stones in the cliff face part of a stoney outcrop on which the mound is placed or placed stone ? Because the upright slab being radial sounds like it might be more a divider than an encloser – wheelhouse maybe
Maes Howe seen in distant sun from the bird hut near the Barnhouse settlement
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The decoration is matched by that found at this year’s Smerquoy dig in Firth, as shown by the excavator with a photo – so obviously the stone is still there, though the image was labelled Ersdale
Watch Stone provides vertical element and Stones of Stenness henge the horizontal
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Ring of Brodgar seen from northen edge of Barnhouse site
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August 3rd view of Kockna-cumming area from Barnhouse settlement ; one of the Brodgar standing stone pair at extreme left (the Lesser Wall of Brodgar would have been marked by them), new excavation area of mound behind spoil heap centre left, old excavation scar beneath white vehicles, main Ness of Brodgar excavation behind houses
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This year they investigated strong circular features shown by geophysics and thought to be revetments [IIRC] for a Wideford-like tomb under the mound, but abandoned this for the time being when their excavation failed to turn up anything substantial. I’m sure if they had followed the common practice of checking a previous antiquarian excavation or the area adjacent they would have had better results. Instead they were (mis)led to an area away on the periphery with less-well defined arcs. At least they seem to have found the edge of the tomb or whatever. However, being perverse, I found twa other things uncovered intriguing. Into/onto the slumped stone mass there is a small sub-circular structure not having the appearance of a chamber – hopefully this is not the planti-creugh shown near the mound on early diagrams, but if not what ? A few feet from this is a depression with some stone tumble – immediately uphill of these two features in the section is an area ?robbed of stone. If it were me I would want to go back and see if either of these two items represents post-monumental activity.
Today the site has produced its first carved stone ball, ironically found by a non-drinker as the discovery prize is whisky. I’m sure the excavation blog will mention it, so look on Orkneyjar tonight I guess. It follows the usual Orcadian form and has round bossed faces.
They still have a long way to catch up to the ‘domestic’ Skara Brae settlement with over half-a-dozen. Elsewhere three were found at the Hillheads in St Ola (one from the circular enclosure/fort) and one each from Sanday, the Links of Noltland in Westray (last year), Orphir (thought to be from Bu [geophys found a double ring feature in the Bu area]), an unidentified Bignor in Stenness itself, and lastly one at Tamaskirk in Rendall.
Thursaday 8.00 in the St Magnus Centre on Palace Road, Kirkwall – results of this year’s dig including tomb. Free talk ‘’Snatched from the Sea : Excavations at Swandro, the story so far.’‘
view west across ring showing the four pseudo-cardinal cairns – Salt and South Knowes at back, Fresh Knowe and Plumcake Mound at front
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Wall and rise (? 2nd tumulus) seen from road by West Bain
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Coming up towards West Bain in Sandwick (near the Bay of Skaill) and two fields to your left a wall made of oversized stones can be seen at the high point. The side facing the road there is still a rise, and I wonder if the cairn overlay something else or if this is the ONB’s other tumulus.
It does seem strange that having bothered to clear the cairn they then undid their work by building this massive wall – perhaps they had thought the mound purely natural, and on discovering their error constructed a memorial over the cist ?
A 13m x 3m x 2m wall was constructed from the Rossel Howe Cairn material (HY22SW 5) some time after the Orkney Name Book of 1880 (the ONB actually places two tumuli here). During the demolition human remains were found in a cist. At the south-east end two stones, one approx 2.3x0.6 m fallen but the other approx 2.3x0.8 m still erect, are thought likely parts of a chamber.